Holidays

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March is officially here… and we’re a LUCKY bunch today! Misha Perritt of A Lovely Design is sharing her St. Patrick’s Day inspiration with a twist, and it’s sure to make you pucker up! Her lipstick inspired “Kiss Me” theme will definitely have you trading your pot o’ gold for a smooch… and maybe cake pop or two. ;)

HWTM Contributor Maureen Anders of Anders Ruff here to share our recent Rustic Cookies and Cocoa Party with Santa that I styled for a session with Michelle Kujawski Photography. A neutral palette with creams and whites, mixed with pops of greenery and red berries made this a super cozy setting for a day with Santa and a home decor that will last all winter long. The kids enjoyed a magical experience that made them feel like they were in Santa’s living room!

Earlier this year, I worked on a handful of recipe videos for Krusteaz®, and this recipe is actually my personal favorite of the bunch… I hope you like it too! The combo of sauteed pears and creamy Gorgonzola is such a yummy mix of sweet & savory, and the candied walnut garnish adds a nice bit of crunch. The layered pear slices also make for a very pretty visual display, which is always a great quality when serving at a party!

I used the new Italian Herb Flatbread Mix from Krusteaz for the crust. It bakes in 10 minutes flat and keeps things fast & easy in the kitchen… which is exactly how I need them to be most of the time, myself. ;)

You can find the full Pear & Gorgonzola Flatbread recipe over on the Krusteaz website, or watch our video below for a tutorial. My favorite ways to serve this flatbread are in generous slices alongside a hearty salad or cut into small rectangles for a festive appetizer.

P.S. If you’re on the lookout for holiday party inspiration, you’ll find plenty of that below, too, from a few of my favorite DIY decor ideas to festive printables you can download for free. Happy Holidays!

1. “POSITIVE” PAINTED PEARS

I kept the look of theses painted pears and their printable paper leaves pretty simple so that the positive sentiments on the leaves would really stand out. The pears are covered in acrylic white paint, and a few of them were also color-blocked with metallic gold spray paint. The leaves are attached with small dabs of hot glue.

2. PARTY FLAGS

Next up is one of my personal staples… party flags! You can attach them to toothpicks, straws, or bamboo skewers (to create drink stirrers).

A few weeks ago, I received a package with a huge red gift box inside…

There was a TOMS logo on the shipping box, and I already knew I’d be receiving some sort of holiday sweater in conjunction with a #TOMSforTarget holiday campaign they were doing, so I just took a super quick peek inside since I was in major deadline mode on another project at the moment. I saw the print of the sweater, but didn’t pull it out of the box… I mean, it was folded up so nicely and all. ;)

Later that night, my husband asked what the deal was with the giant gift box sitting on the table. I said, “I think I’m supposed to wear it in a picture or do some sort of “ugly sweater party” story with it, but it looks HUGE!” I opened the gift box all the way this time, noticed a card inside, and proceeded to read it out loud and try to figure this out… “Well Hello There! You’re probably wondering why you’ve received a large, festive, multi-headed sweater…”

Wait – WHAT?!! Did I just say “multi-headed“???

I yanked that perfectly folded sweater out of the box this time… then proceeded to immediately collapse on the floor laughing. This gigantic holiday sweater did indeed have TWO head holes… THAT was definitely not something I was expecting at all!

The two things that instantly popped in my head upon seeing this sweater:

1) Well played, marketing geniuses. ;)

2) I am seriously going to have the BEST white elephant gift ever at the Christmas party our friends host every year… this baby is definitely going to make for some hilarious pics!

SHOPPING + GIVING

The best thing about all this playfulness is that it’s attached to a really great cause! Many of you are probably already familiar with TOMS and all of the good that they do – every purchase you make from them helps a person in need.

Well, they’ve teamed up with Target this holiday season to offer a signature collection that makes it super easy for holiday shoppers give to people in need across the country. Every TOMS for Target item purchased is matched one-for-one with a donation of blankets, shoes, or meals!

Here’s a tiny peek at the collection, including a t-shirtthat I will admit I bought for myself… at least I know that the purchase helped someone else too!

FREE PRINTABLE: Quote on Happiness + Giving

So in the spirit of giving, I felt compelled to design a little inspirational freebie to give away today too… hopefully it can serve as a helpful reminder of what this season is REALLY about. You know – for those moments when the hecticness and stress of it all start to get to you. (Trust me, I have lots of those moments too, and this quote really does ring true… if you want to make yourself feel happier, the best thing to do is start spreading happiness elsewhere.)

Click here to download a high res PDF of the printable. (The quote fits in an 8×10 frame.)

Well, with Thanksgiving next week, the holiday season is officially upon us… and on that note, I have SO many good things to share with you today! We’re going to start with some stylish, yet surprisingly simple holiday entertaining ideas, then you’re going to find links to download the chalkboard-style holiday printables that I designed […]

{Please note that this is a sponsored post for Anheuser Busch. As always, all opinions are my own, and I only write about products that I genuinely like and would recommend to a friend.} If you haven’t hosted or attended a fiesta-inspired holiday get-together before, now is the perfect time to change all that… because […]